Bosha Drabbles
by Aggressively Hospitable
Summary: A series of Bolin and Sasha drabbles based on the We Love The Water series.
1. The Beginning

Bolin and Sasha- The Beginning.

"Hey, Sasha. Did you miss me?" Bolin asked into his cell phone, the grin on his face stretching impossibly wide as he strolled into his house and left Mako and Korra in the car to talk about 'Mr. Eyeliner'.

"Only if you missed me," Sasha replied sassily as he heard the background noise of the still ongoing party fade away and then a door closing.

"How could I not?" Bolin countered as he quickly made his way into his bedroom.

"I guess I am pretty awesome. Any moment not spent in my presence is just _so bland_!" she teased.

"Ain't that the truth? So listen, I was wondering if we could talk more about our plans for tomorrow. You know, the ones we were making before I was so rudely dragged away?"

"Oh right, those plans," she worded wryly on the other end. "So what did you have in mind?"

"Well, what's something you've always wanted to do but never got to?" he asked, scratching his head uneasily as he couldn't think of anything good enough to suggest.

"Skydiving," Sasha blurted out abruptly.

"Okay… what's the second thing you've always wanted to do but never got to? Because I'm not good with heights."

"So roller coasters aren't your thing?" she presumed.

"No, I love roller coasters. I'm like the roller coaster king, but I like to stay closer to the ground than 35,000 feet," he related a little sheepishly.

"So you don't like to fly?" she guessed, going by the specific number he used.

"F-flying doesn't bother me, it's just... ugh," Bolin started stuttering, causing Sasha to crack up.

"Okay, never mind about the skydiving. How about this, you play hockey right?"

"Oh yeah, I'm kinda one of the best, but it's no big deal or anything… Ahem, I only have like… five, maybe six trophies," he bragged jokingly.

Sasha let out a laugh before suggesting, "Well, I've never been able to ice skate, so how about '_one of the best_' teach me?"

"Consider it done. The rink opens at three, so we could have lunch first. What do you like to eat?"

"Oh, I'll eat anything. What do you like?"

"I know a place that has really good dumplings," he offered.

"Perfect, I love dumplings. Of all fillings, shapes, and sizes."

"Awesome! So, can I pick you up at noon?"

"Noon would be great. Let me give you my address..." Sasha said as she spelled out her address and the best way to get there. "So I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight, Bo," she cooed in parting.

"Goodnight, Sasha," Bolin said back softly before ending the call and sprawling out on his bed with the largest, goofiest grin on his face. "I think I'm in love," he muttered wistfully to himself as he propped his head up with his arms and looked at the ceiling, the image of Sasha's face dancing in his mind's eye as he replayed the night's events in his head.

Sasha had been the one at the door to greet him, Mako, and Korra, her bright smile and bouncy curls bringing attention to her face where his gaze became mesmerized. He hadn't known who she was, but he knew she had the biggest, most beautiful gray eyes he had ever seen in his life. He'd seen bluish gray eyes before but these were pure gray, steel gray, _silver_ gray even. Bolin felt like he could stare into her eyes forever. But it didn't stop there; her skin looked like porcelain, her hair was just barely shoulder length and beautifully curly, and it was as black as his own but shined like she was wearing a halo. He couldn't help but mirror her own smile as her eyes landed on him, even if it was only for a moment.

Then she had turned and led them to the kitchen where Iroh and Asami were. Bolin hadn't been able to remember the last time he had seen Iroh, but it was nice to see there was someone else here who he knew. After exchanging greetings with his old friend, his eyes seemed to find their way back to Sasha. There was just something about her that he couldn't get enough of. He followed her around like a lost puppy, trying to pour on his charms, which were met with playful sarcasm and laughter. Not the nasally, fake giggling he heard so often from other girls, but a real, hearty laugh. It was one of the many things that set her apart from everyone else at the party.

But no one would leave them alone to talk, and other conversations and calls for attention kept separating them. When it was discovered that Bolin was basically the MVP of the best high school hockey team in the state, as well as a member of a popular local band, he was practically dragged away by a sudden influx of newly generated fans. Amid the requests to recount his most astounding wins or to play a song on a guitar that had been pushed into his hands, he kept looking up to scan the throng of faces for the cute little spitfire with the beautiful black hair and gray eyes. When she finally managed to find him again, he decided he wouldn't let her out of his sight for the rest of the night. They somehow ended up on the dance floor together, and it was there that he began to appreciate the height difference between them. Sasha was short. Well, shorter than Korra anyway, which made her the perfect size to spin around and show off his dance moves.

Then the 'incident' happened, and honestly he had seen it coming from a mile away. The way that that Tahno guy had been zeroing in on Korra all night, Bolin knew it had been just a matter of time before something like that happened. He knew Korra well enough to know that she could handle herself, so he had felt okay with staying by Sasha's side even as Korra began dragging the tall, edgy looking dude outside. Bolin hadn't want to waste a second of his time with Sasha. They found a quiet corner and talked the rest of the night, and the more they talked the more he found himself losing sense of anything but her. She loved all the things he did. Even the HULK! How lucky was he to find a girl with _a matching pair of HULK boxers? _And she rode a motorcycle! In leather! How was she single?

Well, she wasn't single anymore, thank God. He had managed to successfully ask her out before he left the party with Korra and Mako, and they had even made plans to see each other the next night. Hopefully, tomorrow would go well. He needed it to go well, because he would never find anyone else like her as long as he lived. Good grief, was she beautiful. And curvy, just the way he preferred girls to look. But it wasn't just that, she was funny and full of spunk, which he loved the most. So far they got along great, and he couldn't help but feel that it would only get better.

Sasha was putting the finishing touches on her hair, deciding to go with straight hair, when she heard a knock on the door. She practically flew to the front door to find a very charming and very handsome looking Bolin on the other side.

"Well hello there," she greeted coyly.

"Hello, yourself. You ready?"

"Yes," Sasha said as she grabbed her purse and shut the door behind her.

Bolin slung his arm around her shoulders like he had the night before as they walked to his truck. Then, trying to be the perfect gentleman, he opened the door for her and helped her up into it before shutting the door for her and practically running to the other side to get in the driver's seat. "So, just to remind you, we're going to a place called Harnook's Dumpling Palace. Have you ever been there?" he asked as he started the truck and began pulling away from the curb.

"Nope, but if you love it I'm sure I will too," Sasha assured him as she placed her hand on the arm rest, a silent invitation for him to hold it.

Bolin caught on immediately and smoothly enveloped her rather petite hand in his own much larger one. Despite the size difference, their hands seemed to mold together nicely; perfectly, in fact. They fell into an easy enough conversation about school and family, mostly complaining about the antics and bossiness of older siblings.

When they arrived at the restaurant, Bolin ordered for them, getting a table full of just about every dumpling on the menu. Sasha for once threw her usual diet out the window, because how could she resist when Bolin was feeding her dumplings from his own chopsticks? She could only imagine how dorky it must have looked, but she didn't care who was watching or what they thought anyway. She was having the time of her life. Somehow they managed to eat most of the dumplings, leaving two small take out containers full of leftovers to take with them.

Then they made their way to the ice rink as they had previously agreed upon, and Bolin helped Sasha put on her ice skates, kneeling on the floor in front of her as he fastened the laces. She had to admit to herself that she liked the position, and her cheeks flushed as she realized the implication behind it, but the grin Bolin gave her when he looked up at her spoke volumes. He managed to actually get her on the ice after about ten minutes of coaxing, but even then she maintained a death grip on his arm, which he didn't seem to mind at all. He even got in front of her and skated backwards while holding onto her hands to help her get more comfortable.

"I got you, Sash. I won't let you fall," he assured her.

"Promise?" Sasha asked nervously as she continued to keep her eyes on him, trusting her feet to practice the gliding motion he had taught her.

"Of course. But even if you do, I'll catch you and let you fall on me. Mako jokes that I'm more padding than muscle anyway," he told her with a chuckle.

"That's a mean thing for him to say," Sasha retorted with a pout.

"He's my big brother, so he picks on me all the time. It's how guys show affection," he explained with a shrug.

"By being mean?" she asked with a skeptical frown.

"It's the way of the guy, and it's probably best not to question it. He doesn't mean it - it's just harmless teasing. Besides, I'm sure you and your sister do the same thing," he reasoned.

"Alana and I either get along great or don't get along at all. There is no in between. And when girls tease, it's more often malicious with a sweet candy coating."

"Yeah, that makes _much_ more sense," he replied with a roll of his eyes.

"It's the way of the girl. Best not to question it," she repeated drolly, using Bolin's words against him.

"Oh, ladies and gentlemen, do I sense sarcasm?" he asked mockingly, his smile incredibly charming while his eyes danced with mirth.

"I don't know - do you sense a wall?" Sasha asked as she pushed him into said wall lightly before laughing at his impact and over dramatic response.

"Oh, how you wound me, my lady," Bolin exclaimed as he put his fists over his heart like she had stabbed him, causing her to laugh harder.

Bolin took up her hand in his own again as they continued to skate around the rink. Then as they were making their second lap, a rather rude girl with that skunk looking hair coloring bumped roughly into Sasha, making her stumble.

"I didn't know they let manatees ice skate," the skank sneered over her shoulder with a cackle.

"And I thought they shot rabid dogs!" Sasha yelled back as she braced herself against Bolin.

Bolin proved true to his word and held her steady, making sure she didn't fall. "Sorry about that. I didn't see her coming. Nice comeback by the way," he snickered as he helped her regain her bearings.

"It's okay. I'm surprised something like that didn't happen sooner. Was that one of your jealous fan girls or something?" she asked as they continued to skate around the rink, keeping an eye on the mean skunk-haired girl to make sure she didn't get near them again.

"I have no idea. I hope not," he responded warily as he looked over at skunk girl again.

As his attention was momentarily pulled away, Sasha took the opportunity check out and appreciate his profile. It was definitely striking, with his strong jaw, cute, upturned nose, bold eyebrows, and uniquely-shaped, spiked up hair. All of a sudden, her lapse of concentration made her lose her footing and fall backwards, bringing Bolin crashing down on top of her. The fall ended with Sasha lying flat on her back, the breath knocked out her as she stared nose-to-nose with Bolin, reminded again of how brilliantly green his eyes were. If their position wasn't awkward enough already, Bolin made it even more so by trying to get up, slipping on the ice, and face planting right into her boobs.

Sasha nearly choked on her sharp intake of breath as Bolin scrambled to get off her, unintentionally placing his hands on her chest as well in his attempt to remove his face from her cleavage. His panic seemed to heighten even more until he finally managed to roll off her and stand up on his shaking legs. Then he turned around to look down at her, his face beet-red and the absolute picture of mortification as he began bending down and extended his hand out to her. Sasha couldn't help it. The hysterical laughter exploded from her until tears appeared in the corners of her eyes as she waved her arm around blindly for his outstretched hand.

"I am so sorry," Bolin apologized while he grabbed her flinging hand and heaved her up.

"It's… it's okay," she wheezed out in between laughs as she stood and leaned into him while she found her balance again. "I mean, I know my boobs are impressive, but-"

"No! I wasn't - I mean, they are impressive, but I-I didn't mean to - I w-would never," he sputtered as he tripped over his words, any semblance of his previous suave exterior completely gone.

"Bolin, it's okay. It was an accident," she assured him as she grabbed his face to look him in the eye. "You don't seem like the kind of guy who would do that on purpose," she added with an understanding smile before releasing him.

But Bolin continued to apologize profusely until Sasha finally pulled the two of them off the ice and kissed him to shut him up. "I said it was okay. Don't you believe me?" she whispered firmly as she pulled back to stare into his now shocked brilliantly green eyes.

"Uh… I'm not sure. Maybe you should…. Kiss me again…" he muttered disconcertingly, gulping as his gaze darted back and forth between her eyes and lips.

Sasha smirked as she shook her head. "How about we get out of here instead? I don't care where, let's just go," she insisted as she made her way over to the bench to get her skates off. "Besides, my thighs are burning like I've been on a stair master for an hour."

Bolin followed and sat next to her as he mirrored her movements. "I really am-"

"Bolin, if you say you're sorry one more time, I swear I will go Mossad on your ass," she warned him sharply.

"Like Ziva on NCIS?" he asked excitedly.

"Yeah," Sasha confirmed, smiling that they had found yet another interest they had in common.

"So what now, handsome?" Sasha asked as they walked outside.

"Uh, I don't know. What did you want to do?" Bolin asked with a shrug.

"What would you say if I suggested something incredibly cheesy and corny?" she asked with a wicked glint in her eye.

"Anything as long as it's not skydiving," he answered, feeling eager yet slightly apprehensive.

"I promise no skydiving," she eased him with a grin. "Take me back to my house for a minute, then we'll go somewhere awesome."

Bolin never would have imagined in a million years that he'd find himself playing go fish on the tailgate of his truck with the girl of his dreams. They sat on a blanket so as to keep the light chill out, and the stars twinkled above them around a perfectly full moon, shining so bright that they could easily see everything as it bathed them in a beautiful blue glow, making Sasha's eyes sparkle more than any diamond Bolin had ever seen. The cards were only half the game though. Sasha had explained the unique set of rules to him: for every pair each of them got, they got to ask the other person a question and they had to answer truthfully, no matter what the question was.

"... And that's why, to this day, I refuse to eat asparagus," Bolin finished.

"Good to know. I have the same aversion to cauliflower," Sasha added.

"See, I don't mind it that much. Now, do you have any sixes?" he asked, peering down at his hand.

"Yep," Sasha answered as she handed him her card. "So, what's your question?"

"Hmm, do you have any pets?"

"No. Always wanted one though."

"Well, I could always be your pet. I'm soft enough, I like to get scratched behind the ears..." Bolin rattled off with a big cheesy grin, eliciting another round of giggles from Sasha.

"Do you do that leg twitching thing when someone rubs your belly too?" Sasha sarcastically inquired, but when he actually indulged her by jerking his foot up in the air, she laughed even harder. "Okay, but at least you don't hump legs, right?"

Bolin pretended to consider the matter deeply with a thoughtful scratch of his chin. "Well… I never have before, but who knows? Maybe if I meet someone special…" he dropped off with a mischievous smile as she cracked up with a very unladylike snort.

"Do you have any fives?" she asked after calming down.

"Go fish. Do you have any jacks?"

"I think you're cheating," Sasha groaned as she relinquished another card.

"I would never cheat," he swore resolutely, crossing his heart in a dramatic gesture. "So... how is it that you were single when we met?"

Sasha took a deep breath and looked down at the cards in her hand. "Because I dumped my last boyfriend around midsummer," she told him as though she was trying her best to sound nonchalant. "What about you? You're popular and handsome enough to have any girl you want. I'm surprised you were single yourself." she furthered, turning the focus on him.

Bolin blushed as he laughed nervously. "Huh, yeah. That's crazy isn't it?" Bolin replied nervously as it seemed the collar of his shirt was suddenly too tight.

Sasha quirked an eyebrow at him. "Did I strike a nerve?"

"Uh, yes. I mean no, no. I'm fine, you're fine, we're fine. I mean, we're good. Wow, the stars are really coming out tonight, aren't they?"

"Okay… Yeah, I guess... got any queens?" Sasha asked moving away from the obviously sensitive subject.

"Go fish," Bolin chirped smugly.

"Damn," Sasha muttered as she drew a card. "Ha!" she said as she picked up a queen and matched her last card. "I win!"

"No... No, I have more pairs. I win." Bolin said as he laid down his hand, which had nothing but more pairs in it.

"You suck!" she exclaimed as she flung her cards at him. "Well, my sole consolation is that those who are lucky at cards are unlucky in love. So there," she pointed out as she stuck her tongue out at him.

Bolin just rocked with laughter. "And yet, you are on a date with me, so what is that supposed to mean?" he retorted. "Besides, I've always believed you should never wish someone luck, because then they'll need it."

"So before one of your matches, I shouldn't wish you luck?" Sasha clarified before taking a sip of her Dr. Pepper.

"I would prefer you didn't," he confirmed as he shuffled the deck.

"Huh. So what _should_ I say before a match?"

"Knock 'em dead?" Bolin answered with a shrug as he dealt the cards for their next round. "I don't know."

"Okay, how about this?" Sasha murmured as she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, causing a blush to bloom where her lips had landed.

"Th-that will work," he stuttered with a nod as he looked up and winked at her, then leaned in further to kiss her fully on the lips.

"That's for when you win," Sasha cooed as they pulled away from each other.

"Deal. Now do you have any threes?" Bolin asked.

"Nope. Go fish," Sasha answered with a wink.

Best first date ever.

* * *

_Author's notes- Thank you again to the ever lovely Alaburn for betaing this and to DupreeRose for suggesting I do this in the first place. Thank you for reading. :)_


	2. Ravioli

Bolin and Sasha- Ravioli

Sasha fidgeted with her necklace as she drove over to Bolin's house. Tonight she would be doing something that scared her more than just about anything else in this world. She would be cooking dinner… with Bolin's mom. Sasha would be the first to admit she couldn't cook. She joked that she burned water. And what made it worse was that both Korra and Bolin had been going on and on about how great his mom was and how she put every other Italian chef to shame. In preparation for the evening, Sasha had spent over an hour getting ready. She even commandeered her sister's blouse for the occasion because nothing in her closet seemed to be good enough. All of it was suddenly too sexy or it didn't fit right. She wanted her first impression to be the best it could be, and the last thing she wanted was for Bolin's parents, especially his mother, to think she was a slut or anything like that.

Sasha turned onto Bolin's street and her heart was suddenly in her throat. What if his parents didn't like her? She usually had no problem displaying an air of confidence wherever she went, but by now any trace of coolness she possessed had abandoned her. She had never gotten this nervous with any of her other boyfriend's parents. She had always felt like they should be grateful and proud that their son had managed to catch her, but somehow this was different, and it put things into an entirely different perspective.

Sasha shook her head to get rid of her doubts as she parked in the driveway and took a deep breath, then she got out of the car and adjusted her clothes again to make sure they looked perfect. As she stood there, fidgeting and stalling, Bolin bounded out of the front door with his reddish, chocolate colored ferret, Pabu, slung around his neck.

"Hey, babe!" he greeted, sweeping her up into his arms like he hadn't seen her in weeks, even though she had just seen him the night before.

"Hi, Bo. Hey, Pabu," Sasha cooed as she pet the furry creature, scratching him behind the ears to his apparent enjoyment.

"What's in the bag?" Bolin asked as he pointed to the small gift bag Sasha was carrying.

"Good manners dictate you never go to someone's house empty handed. You told me your mom was Italian, so I got her some olive oil. It's supposed to be a really good kind. I hope that's okay," Sasha explained with a grimace. If she had been older she would have brought over a good bottle of wine or something like that. She felt like an idiot. Who brings over a bottle of _olive oil_ when meeting your boyfriend's parents?

"I'm sure Mom will love it. She'll definitely use it," he tried to assure her.

"Uh huh," she muttered, not convinced in the slightest. But she did her best not to show her insecurity as she squared her shoulders and held her head up high and walked to the door with Bolin's arm wrapped around her waist.

"You need to relax, babe. They're going to love you," he promised as he felt the tension in her body.

"I hope so," she muttered under her breath as she walked through the door that Bolin held open for her.

"Hey, Ma! Sasha's here!" Bolin called out, causing Sasha to gasp and try to shush him while her cheeks flamed red.

"In the kitchen, Bo!" a woman's voice called back.

Bolin took Sasha's hand and led her into the kitchen where his mother was standing at the counter, an apron tied around her waist as she was busily preparing something that smelled amazing. The larger built woman turned as they came through the door and gave them a smile that seemed to light up the room. She had dark hair, eyes as green as Bolin's, and a sweet, kind face that looked warm and inviting.

"Hello, Mrs. Zhang. It's nice to finally meet you," Sasha said politely as she extended her hand.

"Nice to meet you too, Sasha. Just call me Vinnie," she greeted as she shook Sasha's hand then glanced down at the small gift bag Sasha was carrying.

"Oh, this is for you," Sasha said as she held it out to her, realizing she had almost forgotten about it.

"Thank you, you didn't have to," Vinnie replied as she graciously took the gift bag and pulled out the fancy bottle of olive oil. "Oh, wow, thank you so much!" she exclaimed before giving the girl in front of her a hug.

"So, Bolin said you were French?" Vinnie asked, trying to start a conversation as she turned back to the filling in the bowl.

"I am, on my father's side," Sasha clarified as she stepped closer to watch with polite curiosity.

"That's nice. Would you like to help me make the ravioli?" Vinnie inquired.

"Well, the running gag in my family is that I burn water, so that might not be the best idea," Sasha responded, half joking, half serious.

"You can't be that bad. Come on, I'll show you what to do - it's easy," Vinnie assured her before gesturing to an apron.

As Sasha was putting it on, Vinnie looked over to Bolin who was absentmindedly playing with Pabu while actually trying to inconspicuously check out Sasha's backside. "Bolin, get that rat out of my kitchen," his mother commanded sternly, one hand on her hip while the other pointed to the door.

"But he's not doing anything," he argued, snapping his attention from his girlfriend to his mother then to his pet before Vinnie gave him a look that meant business.

"Yes, Ma," Bolin groaned as he pulled himself away to put Pabu in his cage.

"I swear that boy has an unnatural attachment to that thing," Vinnie grumbled before getting the flour and eggs out to make the pasta. "Does your family have any pets?" she asked as she made two distinct wells in the flour and cracked eggs into them, gesturing for Sasha to mimic her movements.

"My sister keeps a fish tank. Does that count?" Sasha remarked with a shrug. "Other than that, no. My parents are either working too much or traveling, and I'm busy with school and everything else, so..." Sasha trailed off as she did her best to mirror Vinnie's movements with the pasta dough.

"Where do your parent's travel to? If you don't mind me asking."

"New York, Antwerp, India, and Israel mostly. They own Noir Jewelers, so they travel to acquire diamonds, gems, and gold for the business. They can be gone for weeks at a time."

"Must get lonely for you," Vinnie noted.

"It does, but I try to keep busy so I don't notice it too much," Sasha explained. "Besides, now that I'm dating Bo, there doesn't seem to be a dull moment."

"Ain't that the truth? That boy has always been a party waiting for a place to happen," Vinnie agreed as she washed her hands and let the dough rest. "Bolin told me that you were one of the girls that convinced Korra to start dressing like a girl?" she asked, changing the subject.

"She is a bit of a tomboy, isn't she?" Sasha said with a chuckle as she washed her own hands off.

"A bit is an understatement," Vinnie replied as they shared a laugh.

"Korra is a great girl and an even better friend. I was happy to help her along," Sasha admitted with a fond smile.

"That she is. We love her and her family very dearly. How is she by the way? Since she started dating that one guy that Mako complains wears eyeliner, I haven't seen or heard much from her."

"She's good and happy as far as I know, and his name is Tahno. I've known him since middle school," Sasha answered.

"What kind of boy is he?" Vinnie asked, her eyes slightly narrowed.

"Smart, snarky, stuck up, full of it, and I know that sounds kind of bad, but overall he's actually a great guy. A big softie if you can figure out how to get to know him," Sasha defended, sensing the conflict of interest on Vinnie's part. Perhaps Vinnie had wanted Korra to date Mako as much as Korra had. "They really do make a great couple. They seem very evenly matched," Sasha added, noticing the way Vinnie seemed to mull over her answer before turning and getting out her pasta roller.

"Well, I hope he treats her well. Korra isn't the kind of girl to be trifled with," she said with a note of finality. "So, now we should roll out the pasta," she began, turning the conversation back to cooking.

"So that's how you make ravioli," Vinnie concluded as she fished the pieces of pasta out of the boiling water and put them into the pot with the sauce.

"Awesome. I'm going to have to try and do this at home. My parents will be amazed," Sasha said. "Can you give me the full recipe?"

"Of course, you can copy it from this recipe card. It's from my grandmother who was from the '_old country_' so it's as authentic as you can get," Vinnie bragged as she handed Sasha the well-worn piece of paper.

"Oh, this calls for ground pork," Sasha realized with surprise.

"Is that a problem?" Vinnie asked curiously.

"My mother and her side of the family are Jewish, so can I substitute ground turkey?" Sasha inquired as she continued to put the recipe into her phone's notes.

"You're better off substituting beef; turkey would end up too dry. But does this mean you don't eat pork as well?" Vinnie asked, worried that she had just inadvertently offended Sasha.

"No, I eat pork all the time, so don't worry about me. While I respect my mother's traditions and beliefs, I don't follow and abide by _all_ the ones she does," Sasha explained with an easy and reassuring smile as she finished putting the recipe into her phone. "Thank you so much for teaching me. My mother doesn't really cook that much, so it's not like I have a lot of opportunity to learn these things."

"You're welcome. Anytime," Vinnie said as she gave her a side hug before beginning to prepare a salad. "Although I have to tell you, you must be pretty special for Bolin to invite you to have dinner with us."

"Why is that?" Sasha asked as she helped wash the vegetables.

"Because you're the first girlfriend he's ever let us meet like this," she explained.

"Really?" Sasha asked, completely stunned.

"He's dated other girls before, but it always seemed he was embarrassed by them or something, I don't know. Whenever they tried to 'surprise' him by coming over, he always seemed to rush them out of the house as fast as possible before I or his father got to speak to them. But you, you're obviously different, because not only has he invited you over, he's left you alone in here with me, which means he trusts you to handle yourself and wants us to be on good terms," Vinnie speculated thoughtfully.

"Well I think it's going well. How about you?" Sasha ventured bravely, trying to sound casual.

"I agree, and I can see why my son likes you so much."

"And why wouldn't you?" Bolin announced from the doorway with a bright smile. "She's only the sweetest, coolest, and most awesome, wonderful, beautiful, amazing, brilliant, spectacular, witty, charming, graceful girl ever to walk the earth!" Bolin praised as he came in and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Can't say much about her brains though, since she chose me."

Sasha rolled her eyes and smacked him in the arm, but blushed with an enormous grin nonetheless.

Vinnie shook her head and smiled with an eye roll of her own. "Okay, you two sweethearts, go set the table so we can eat finally," she told them before leaving the room to holler at Mako and her husband to get in the dining room for dinner.

"See? Told you they'd love you," Bolin whispered as he helped bring the rest of the food to the table while winking at her from over his shoulder.

And Sasha had to admit, it could have gone a lot worse.

* * *

_Author's notes- Again, thank you so much Alaburn for betaing and making it even more awesome. _

_So this takes place fairly early on in the relationship but I'm still not EXACTLY sure where on the WLTW timeline. But it was still really fun. Thank you for reading. _


	3. I Didn't Know

Bolin and Sasha - **I Didn't Know**

"Have I mentioned how much I hate your brother?" Sasha pointed out as they drove home from the ski slopes.

"Yes. On several occasions," Bolin deadpanned as he glared out of windshield and tried to see though the snow that continued to fall.

"I mean he punched Korra. In the face. And then he just leaves! He ran away like a coward!" she continued to rant. "Where does he get off saying those things? Is he insane? Ugh, I can't stand him! What is his deal? Is it his goal to be the biggest asshole on earth?"

"God, Sasha! I get it! Mako messed up tonight. He messed up really bad, okay? Now let it go," he demanded irritably as he clenched his fingers around the steering wheel and continued to traverse down the mountain road.

Sasha huffed and crossed her arms over her chest while snapping her head to the side to look out the window, effectively giving Bolin the silent treatment all the way to her house.

"Goodnight," Sasha bit out after they finally arrived and Bolin pulled to a stop. She got out of the car and began stalking toward her house, not caring about her skis on top of his car as she dug into her purse for her house keys.

"Sasha, wait," Bolin pleaded as he too got out and chased after her.

"What?" Sasha grumbled as she turned to glare at him.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you. I just… I don't like it when anyone bashes my brother, okay? No matter how much he deserves it. I'm sure you wouldn't like it if anyone started talking about Alana like that," he tried to reason.

"You're right, but it still doesn't excuse what he did."

"Don't you think I know that? Don't you think I wanted to beat his ass for hurting Korra? She's been my best friend and-" Bolin began to rant himself before stopping abruptly.

"And what?" Sasha demanded.

Bolin hesitated before answering, which just left Sasha even more irritated. "Goodnight, Bolin." she spat before she turned to open her door.

"Don't be like this, Sasha," he pleaded while he reached out to grab her arm.

Sasha's entire frame suddenly stiffened and her head snapped up as she let out a soft, barely audible gasp. "Get your hands off of me."

"Sasha, just look at me. Please?" he begged her, trying to use his hold on her to turn her to face him.

"I said get your fucking hands off of me, Nicky!" Sasha roared as she twisted in his hold and clawed his hand off of her arm, then kicked him in the shins before disappearing into the house.

Bolin stood there completely stunned with his jaw on the ground. _'Who the hell is Nicky?'_ he thought to himself before looking down at his now slightly bleeding hand, confusion and alarm pulsing through his mind.

"Hey! Sasha, I'm sorry!" he yelled as he pounded on the door.

"Hey! Go home!" a new voice answered him as the door opened to reveal Sasha's sister, Alana.

"But I just..." Bolin tried to argue as he gestured to inside the house.

"No buts. I said go home," Alana repeated forcefully as she tried shutting the door.

"Wait! Who's Nicky?" he asked before it closed.

Alana stopped and hesitated, then peered at him speculatively before asking warily, "Sasha didn't tell you?"

"Uh, no. This is the first time a 'Nicky' has ever been mentioned," he replied brusquely.

Alana took a deep breath and came out onto the porch, closing the door behind her as she took her phone out of her back pocket. "How far have you gotten in your relationship with Sasha?" she asked as she went through the photo gallery on her phone. "Have you gotten to the point where you talk about exes?"

"A little bit," Bolin admitted.

"This is Nicky. Short for Nicholas," she informed as she held up her phone to show a picture of a tall, lanky guy with his arm resting on Sasha's shoulders. The picture looked older. Sasha's hair was much longer, down to her waist, and it looked like she had about a pound of makeup on. "And this is why Nicky isn't around anymore," Alana worded tightly as she went to another picture. This one showed Sasha sitting in a hospital bed, bruised from head to toe. "She had tried to break up with him, and this was how he handled it. The fucking bastard planned it so that none of us were home. He shattered her phone so that she couldn't call for help, then he took a chef knife and hacked off most of her hair before he beat the shit out of her. That's why it's still so short. Thankfully, our neighbor heard Sasha screaming and called the cops."

Bolin couldn't speak. He could barely even breathe. He grabbed the roots of his hair with one hand as he pressed his back into the brick wall of the house, trying to absorb this new information as it battered his heart.

"What's really sad is that this wasn't the first time he hurt her," Alana related bitterly. "That's why in a lot of older pictures she wears a ton of makeup, to cover up the bruises on her face while the long sleeve shirts covered the ones on her arms... he was a monster."

"I had no idea. She… no one ever told me about this," he muttered, internally kicked himself for not seeing the signs in her behavior before now.

"I figured as much. None of us can even say his name anymore without her freaking out a little."

"Please tell me he's in jail," Bolin pleaded as the pain in his chest continued to stab at him aggressively, making it difficult to draw air into his lungs.

Alana gave a small, smug smile while she put her phone away. "Yes, he is, but only for another year. After that Sasha has a restraining order, so we shouldn't be seeing much of him."

"Can you please let me inside?" Bolin beseeched her as he took a step forward. "I need to apologize to her. I won't be able to live with myself if I don't, and I can't leave things like this with us. I swear I would _never, __**ever**_hurt her."

She seemed to think it over for a moment before nodding. "I don't think you would intentionally hurt her, but forgive us all if we're a bit gun shy. She's in her room, probably still crying."

Then she opened the door and let him in, and he immediately went to Sasha's room and knocked softly on the door as he held his breath.

"Who is it?" Sasha sounded from the other side.

"It's me," he answered. "Alana let me in. I'm so sorry, Sasha. I didn't know about… that guy." Bolin's voice wavered slightly as the pictures of her battered and bruised swam in front of his eyes and his stomach knotted itself. He leaned his arm on the door and rested his head against it as he closed his eyes, then nearly fell into her when she opened the door.

Her face was pale with streaks of mascara under her eyes and smudged on the wrist of her sleeve. "I know you didn't mean it. It's just... that's where he used to grab me before he..." Sasha sputtered out in a sob before Bolin had her securely in his arms as he held onto her so tight he worried that she couldn't breathe, but the desperation in which she clung to him told him that she needed it.

"I swear on my life I will never hurt you, especially like that. If I ever see him I will rip his throat out and give it to you for Christmas," he promised as he nuzzled her neck and shoulder.

"You stole that line from Tahno," Sasha teased while she chuckled through her tears and rubbed her face into his chest.

"Yep, but what can I say? The guy has some pretty awesome one-liners," he mused as he stroked the back of her head.

Sasha sniffed heavily before murmuring against his shirt, "And I'm sorry too."

"Why?" he asked in confusion.

"For upsetting you for saying all that stuff about Mako. I haven't changed my mind about him, but I shouldn't have said it in front of you. It wasn't fair of me."

"Don't apologize for that, okay? It's alright. I haven't been completely open with you about everything in my past either, and that's my fault."

"What do you mean?" she asked as she raised her head enough to look up at him questioningly.

"Mako is the way he is because of our family's history. We used to struggle a lot. Financially. We were basically living in poverty for a few years when Mako and I were kids. Our mom was really sick at the time and couldn't take care of us, and our dad couldn't get a stable job anywhere. My brother started doing odd jobs when he was twelve to help out and he sacrificed a lot to make sure I was taken care of. It was a pretty dark time and I think it scarred Mako more than it ever did me. He shielded me a lot from knowing how bad things were, but he was just a kid too. Anyway, I don't know what would have happened if we hadn't met Korra's family. They helped us get back on our feet and have been like family ever since."

"Oh my god, Bolin," Sasha whispered shakily as more tears appeared in her eyes. "I'm so, so sorry."

He shushed her gently before continuing, "That's why Mako's so protective of the people he considers family, and he tends to act first and ask questions later. I think the memories of being helpless come back to him and clouds his thinking and makes him so angry that it scares even him. But it's still not excusable. He needs to find a way to sort himself out, and he knows it. I'm sure he hates himself for hurting Korra even more than you do."

"I bet he does," Sasha agreed with a nod. "Damn, I actually feel sorry for him. And for you," she added softly as she touched a hand to his face.

"Don't be," he said, his mouth turning into a light smile under her touch. "I have the most amazing girl in the world wrapped in my arms, remember?"

Sasha smiled back and sighed as she let her head fall on his chest again, tightening her hold on him. They stayed like that for a long time, saying nothing and holding each other as all was forgiven.

"Remember our first date?" Bolin suddenly asked tentatively after a few minutes.

"Yeah, and I still say you cheated," Sasha replied cheekily.

"And you asked me why I was still single when you and I met?" he reminded her, to which Sasha nodded into his shoulder. "I was single because I was waiting. I was waiting for the right girl. One who would see me for me and not for my popularity or any of that other stuff. One that would realize I'm more than a gorgeous face," he ended with a playful grin.

Sasha chuckled again and moved to look at him. "Well, that is an awfully gorgeous face, but it's not nearly as gorgeous as the man underneath it."

Then she stood up on her toes and pressed her lips to his as her hands came up to tangle in his hair. Bolin returned the kiss, keeping her body pulled as close to him as possible as they began to lose all sense of time and place.

* * *

_Author's notes- Thank you to Alaburn for betaing, you wonderful person you. _

_So yeah, neither of them have a squeaky clean past. And if you didn't know, in the Jewish culture, a big part of a young woman's beauty is her hair, that's why it would REALLY do a lot of phsychological damage for it to be cut off, especially in that fashion. _

_Thank you for reading. _


End file.
